DOCSLIB.ORG

Killing Us Softly

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Killing Us Softly Killing Us Softly Dr Mark Donohoe Killing Us Softly (draft 2004) Page 1 With special thanks and gratitude, I dedicate this book to my friend and intellectual playmate, William Vayda, who died in early 1997. William was a man ignored by medical practitioners and science, much to medicine's shame. He remains the most effective healer I have ever met, a man capable of integrating the most diverse and apparently unconnected information for the benefit of his patients. I miss his companionship and his challenges greatly This is a book commenced, but never completed, in 1995 and 1996. It was “completed” of sorts around mid 1998. I have made only minor changes since then, and so I now pass it out to the community as a summary of the views and opinions I formed from the many years of wonderful education provided to me by my chemically injured patients. Like all would-be authors, I am always planning other books, and the next update. This one is for free, under Creative Commons, for passing on to anyone who may have an interest in its subject. The only restrictions are: 1. It be passed on without charge of any type (i.e. for free), and 2. It be passed on with attribution to me and a link to my download page http://web.mac.com/doctormark/DoctorMark/KUS.html There is no charge, and no hidden agenda. I am simply keen to know the number of people interested enough to download it. As well, I’ll leave a feedback email button at the bottom for use by down-loaders. Your feedback will help me decide whether to rewrite, update or correct the book, and whether or not to print it. In ink. On paper. I am more than open to feedback & correction. Please email me at [email protected] Table of Contents Introduction 1 Chapter 1 The day the church burned down 3 Chapter 2 Another World - Smell and the brain 5 The first and most intimate sense 5 Olfaction and immunity 7 What is a brain? 10 Thoughts on perfumes and divorce 12 Chapter 3 Doing Medicine 13 Paradoxical patients - the start of a medical journey 13 Bill, Max and the SEAC 13 Observations from an MCS watcher 15 Symptoms and signs 15 Test results 19 Conclusions from these tests 23 Ponds Hand Cream 24 Chapter 4 Politics and medicine 25 The problems with specialising 25 Crazy people, crazy doctors 26 The price doctors pay 29 The politics of testing in multiple chemical sensitivities 31 A two billion dollar error of judgement 32 Chapter 5 Problems in Toxicology 35 Risky benefit 35 Risk for profit 36 If we could talk to the animals 38 Acronymphomania 43 Toxicologists I have not known 49 Avoiding harm from specialists 50 The International Council for Molecular Management 52 Chapter 6 Toxicity or Sensitivity 55 Categorising adverse reactions 55 The dangers of assuming 56 Total Load 61 Chapter 7 Hypotheses for consideration 65 Conditioned responses (part I) 65 Conditioned Responses (part II) 68 Neurotransmitters - please consider 68 Histamine 69 The Chaos Of The Mind 71 Biochemical Individuality 74 The Liver, The Gut And The Brain 77 Fiddling With Hormones 80 “Catching” MCS 81 MCS Is Normal - It Is The World That Is Weird 83 Chapter 8 Epilogue 85 Captions for figures referred to in book 87 Introduction In 1995 and 1996, I was invited by the Australian Chemical trauma Alliance to address their annual conference. The pay is lousy, the conditions sparse, and the travelling to distant “chemical free zones” is always exhausting. I would not miss one for the world. Why? Because of two things - the debt I owe to those who suffer from environmental illnesses and who have spent patient hours educating me; and the wonderful opportunity to catch up with peo- ple like Gunnar Heuser, Archie Kalokorinos, Larry Budd and the other caring, brilliant and inno- vative physicians who have put their reputation on the line by daring to deal with these unpopular low level adverse chemical effects on health. It is to these acquaintances, as well as Bill Rea and his colleagues in the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, that I owe a great deal, and without their support, guidance, inspiration and advice, I feel I would have bowed to the pressure years ago, and returned to a simple and profitable medical practice centred on painful orifices and runny noses! After the 1996 conference, Dr Heuser had a chat with me about spreading the ideas in my pres- entation further. This led to some months of gathering my thoughts and feelings on this challenging and complex issue, and moving towards a coherent view of the problem. I could not do it. As I wrote, whole streams of ideas, stories, insights, theories and memories emerged and have simply been set to paper. Many may find my style distracting and annoying, as I move in and out of vaguely related issues on the way through a subject. My guess, however, is that my mind, when put to the task of such a subject, has adopted some of the loosened associations so com- mon to those who suffer the illness. If so, this book may make more sense to those with multiple chemical sensitivities than to those without it. I can only suggest that the reader simply flow with the stories, and see if, at the end, I have provided a worthwhile understanding of the condition, its social context, and the people who suffer it. My aim here is to stimulate thought on the subject, to touch on some of the significant issues as I see them as a medical practitioner and researcher specialised in this field, and to tell some of the stories which define for me the principles of multiple chemical sensitivities. It is not designed to be a scientific treatise, nor is it intended to be too dogmatic. I have little time for psychiatry, toxicol- ogy, law, agrochemical manufacturers and plastic surgery. Although I feel the world would be the better if these fields were all to evaporate without a trace, I am prepared to live with them – their flaws provide fodder for contemplation. These are among my only real gripes in life, though. I feel thoroughly energised by a magical and wonderful world, and I am inclined to do some work to make sure it survives and thrives, and continues to enthral my three daughters, and their future children as well. I suspect that, should we fail to pay attention to those with multiple chemical sensitivities, we may be missing the early warning signs not of sick people, but of a dying planet. KUS •!Dr Mark Donohoe (internet Creative Commons release 2008) 1 I thank those people who have sought my help over the past decade for their health problems related to adverse effects of low dose chemicals on their health. The education provided to me by those brave, ignored, persistent, infuriating and inspiring people and their carers over thousands of hours has been a privilege. I have provided the time and the ears, while they have enlightened me with the stories which, taken together, have given me and my colleagues a unique insight into medicine, our society, and the resourcefulness of those people who suffer most in the name of progress. To those people I owe my deepest gratitude. The story of multiple chemical sensitivities is a difficult one to set in a social context at present. The understanding is emerging, and the data which seemed to be lacking in the past are now flood- ing in. I will be satisfied if, after reading my contribution, a reader has his or her faith in regula- tory bodies, manufacturers and medicine shaken. Growing up is often a painful experience in which blind faith must be discarded, and in which we seek the truth for ourselves. The truth, for me, is the people who see me and relate their all too similar stories day after day. It is not theory, experts, authorities of newspaper stories. I urge and invite you all to lose your faith, and grow your own knowledge and understanding. Believe noth- ing I or others say without testing it against your experience. Then, do not doubt the truth you find, no matter what the “experts” say. Dr Mark Donohoe 2004 2 Killing Us Softly • chemical injury & chemical sensitivity) Chapter 1 The day the church burned down Smells detonate softly in our memory like poignant land mines, hidden under the weedy mass of many years and experience. Dianne Ackerman - A Natural History of the Senses There are smells that I shall not forget as long as I live. As a seven year old in a small catholic country primary school, there was one day a most unusual smell in the classroom. Different than the day to day smells of the classroom, I recall the eerie qui- etness in the classroom as we all sniffed the air, seeking a match from memory, from past experi- ence. With none forthcoming, not even from Sister Celestine, we were bewildered. Apprehensive. Silent. Someone burst through the door and the future meaning of that aroma was set forever in all of us, crystallised by the adrenaline rush of the emergency. The local church, only thirty yards from the classroom, was ablaze. We ran outside, and our young senses were assailed by a most dramatic experience. Flames soared heavenwards from the top of the old wooden building, the heat blasted our face, sirens and fire bells progressively drowned out the screams of panic, and the thick smoke left an oily taste in our mouths.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Treating Dysosmia, from Saline to Surgery
    日鼻誌４７!：５１～５２，２００８ 特別講演２ TREATING DYSOSMIA, FROM SALINE TO SURGERY Donald A. Leopold, MD, FACS University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, United States of America The sense of smell begins with airflow through the nose. The exact path of this airflow has only recently been investigated. Some of this data comes from models, both life size and enlarged models using measurements of airflow. Additional information comes from computerized airflow models of the nasal cavities. The neural pathways of olfaction begin with the olfactory receptors high in the nasal cavity. After transduction from the chemical to the electrical information, this information is transferred through the olfactory bulb and into the central brain. Patients typically present with one of three different types of dysosmia. The first is simply a decreased ability to perceive smells（hyposmia and anosmia）. The two remaining types of dysosmia relate to distortions of perceived smells. One of these（parosmia）is a distortion of smell odorants that are actually in the environment. The third type is theperceptionofanodorwhenthereisnoodorantintheenvironment（phantosmia or hallucination）. The clinical task of the physician seeing these patients is to decide on the etiology of the problem and to recom- mend therapy if possible. The clinical history is one of the best tools the clinician has, but the physical examination, sensory testing and imaging can also be helpful. Diagnostic categories for these patients are many, but the most com- mon include nasal inflammatory disease for about a third of these patients, the losses that occur after an upper respira- tory infection in about 25 percent of the patients and head trauma in about 15 percent of patients.
    [Show full text]
  • Taste and Smell Disorders in Clinical Neurology
    TASTE AND SMELL DISORDERS IN CLINICAL NEUROLOGY OUTLINE A. Anatomy and Physiology of the Taste and Smell System B. Quantifying Chemosensory Disturbances C. Common Neurological and Medical Disorders causing Primary Smell Impairment with Secondary Loss of Food Flavors a. Post Traumatic Anosmia b. Medications (prescribed & over the counter) c. Alcohol Abuse d. Neurodegenerative Disorders e. Multiple Sclerosis f. Migraine g. Chronic Medical Disorders (liver and kidney disease, thyroid deficiency, Diabetes). D. Common Neurological and Medical Disorders Causing a Primary Taste disorder with usually Normal Olfactory Function. a. Medications (prescribed and over the counter), b. Toxins (smoking and Radiation Treatments) c. Chronic medical Disorders ( Liver and Kidney Disease, Hypothyroidism, GERD, Diabetes,) d. Neurological Disorders( Bell’s Palsy, Stroke, MS,) e. Intubation during an emergency or for general anesthesia. E. Abnormal Smells and Tastes (Dysosmia and Dysgeusia): Diagnosis and Treatment F. Morbidity of Smell and Taste Impairment. G. Treatment of Smell and Taste Impairment (Education, Counseling ,Changes in Food Preparation) H. Role of Smell Testing in the Diagnosis of Neurodegenerative Disorders 1 BACKGROUND Disorders of taste and smell play a very important role in many neurological conditions such as; head trauma, facial and trigeminal nerve impairment, and many neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson Disorders, Lewy Body Disease and Frontal Temporal Dementia. Impaired smell and taste impairs quality of life such as loss of food enjoyment, weight loss or weight gain, decreased appetite and safety concerns such as inability to smell smoke, gas, spoiled food and one’s body odor. Dysosmia and Dysgeusia are very unpleasant disorders that often accompany smell and taste impairments.
    [Show full text]
  • Loss of Taste and Smell After Brain Injury
    Loss of taste and smell after brain injury Introduction Following a brain injury many people report that their senses of taste and/or smell have been affected. This may be as a consequence of injury to the nasal passages, damage to the nerves in the nose and mouth, or to areas of the brain itself. Loss or changes to smell and taste are particularly common after severe brain injury or stroke and, if the effects are due to damage to the brain itself, recovery is rare. The effects are also often reported after minor head injuries and recovery in these cases is more common. If recovery does occur, it is usually within a few months of the injury and recovery after more than two years is rare. Sadly, there are no treatments available for loss of taste and smell, so this factsheet is designed to provide practical suggestions on how you can compensate. It provides information on health, safety and hygiene issues, suggestions to help you to maintain a healthy, balanced diet, information on psychological effects and some other issues to consider. How are taste and smell affected by brain injury? The two senses can both be affected in a number of different ways and some definitions of the terms for the different conditions are provided below: Disorders of smell Anosmia Total loss of sense of smell Hyposmia Partial loss of sense of smell Hyperosmia Enhanced sensitivity to odours Phantosmia/Parosmia ‘False’ smells – Perceiving smells that aren’t there Dysosmia Distortion in odour perception Disorders of taste Dysgeusia Distortion or decrease in the sense of taste Ageusia Total loss of sense of taste Dysgensia Persistent abnormal taste Parageusia Perceiving a bad taste in the mouth 1 The two senses are connected and much of the sensation of taste is due to smell, so if the sense of smell is lost then the ability to detect flavour will be greatly affected.
    [Show full text]
  • Paroxysmal Bilateral Dysosmia Treated by Resection of the Olfactory Bulbs
    160 Surg Neurol 1993 ;40:160-3 Paroxysmal Bilateral Dysosmia Treated by Resection of the Olfactory Bulbs J.M. Markert, M.D., D.O. Hartshorn, M.D., and S.M. Farhat, M.D. Department of Surgery, Section of Neurosurgery and Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan Medical Center, and Catherine McAuley Health Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan Markert JM, Hartshorn DO, Farhat SM. Paroxysmal bilateral Case Report dysosmia treated by resection of the olfactory bulbs. Surg Neurol 1993;40:160-3. P.G., a 37-year-old woman, was seen in November 1988. She reported a 17 year history of dysosmia with paroxysms of peculiar sensations of smell. These sensa- Dysosmia, or the distortion of olfaction, is most commonly tions were usually brought on by inhalation of other preceded by viral illness or head trauma, but has a variety strong odors, such as cigars, perfume, or onions; how- of etiologies. The precise nature of the disease process remains obscure. Medical management is largely empiric, ever, they also could be triggered by sudden turning of and has been aimed at treating underlying illnesses, re- the head, a big sniff, or emotional and physical stress. stricting triggering medications, as well as various phar- The common cold or flu would also exacerbate the sensa- macologic interventions. Successful eradication of a severe tion. Dysosmia paroxysms were described as unlike any case of persistent unilateral paroxysmal dysosmia with other odor, and always the same: of a hot, foul and resection of the ipsilateral olfactory bulb has been re- smoky nature on the right, and a sickeningly sweet, ported.
    [Show full text]
  • Let's Talk About . . . Migraine and Dizziness
    LET’S TALK ABOUT . MIGRAINE AND DIZZINESS Migraine is almost as common as high blood Key points pressure in the Canadian population. It is more • A migraine is a severe headache. common than asthma or diabetes. An estimated 300,000 Canadians suffer needlessly because they • Of over 300 types of migraine, dizziness is have either been misdiagnosed or not diagnosed a symptom of two: migraine with brainstem with chronic migraine. aura and vestibular migraine. • See a doctor who specialized in headaches for accurate diagnosis. What are the symptoms of migraine with dizziness? • Lifestyle changes may help prevent or lessen the occurrence of migraine. Common symptoms include: • Medication may help prevent migraine. • Visual aura – you may see flashes of light or have blind spots in your vision. • Localized pain behind or near the eye on one Note: Concussion also causes migraine-type side of your head. dizziness – concussion sufferers can substitute the • Light, sound (hyperacusis) and odor sensitivity word “concussion” for “migraine” in the information (hyperosmia). You may have some sensitivity below. daily and increased sensitivity when you have migraine. • Visual vestibular mismatch (the brain’s What is migraine? hypersensitivity to motion) is common in Migraine is a neurovascular headache, meaning it migraine-type brains both episodically and can be triggered by annoyance or disturbance to chronically. Sometimes it will occur without the nerves or blood vessels in the brain. All headache and you may feel “off” for an hour or migraines are caused by the same type of two. neurotransmitter dysregulation and respond to the • Vertigo (spinning sensation) – it may start same treatments.
    [Show full text]
  • Critical Illness and Changes in Sensory Perception
    Proceedings of the Nutrition Society (2007), 66, 331–345 DOI:10.1017/S0029665107005599 g The Author 2007 Critical illness and changes in sensory perception Susan S. Schiffman Department of Psychiatry, 54212 Woodhall Building, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710–3259, USA Impairments of sensory perception that occur during a period of critical care can seriously impact on health and nutritional status, activities of daily living, independence, quality of life and the possibility of recovery. It is emphasized from the outset that sensory losses in critically- ill patients may or may not be related to their current medical condition. The present paper provides an overview of all five senses (vision, hearing, taste, smell and touch) and describes the factors that contribute to sensory losses in critically-ill patients, including medications, medical conditions and treatments and the process of aging itself. Cancer and stroke are two critical illnesses in which profound sensory decrements often occur. Many sensory complaints in patients with cancer are related to alteration in sensory signals caused by damage to the sensory receptors. However, some complaints, such as taste aversions in patients with cancer, are not related to altered sensory physiology per se but to learned aversions that arise during the noxious effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The paper also reviews a study in which the sensory performance (of all five senses) was compared in three groups of elderly subjects: (1) patients who had undergone coronary artery bypass surgery; (2) patients with cardio- vascular conditions but with no history of surgery; (3) healthy non-medicated age-matched controls.
    [Show full text]
  • Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment of Olfactory Dysfunction
    Clinical Diagnosis and Treatment of Olfactory Dysfunction Seok Hyun Cho Hanyang Med Rev 2014;34:107-115 http://dx.doi.org/10.7599/hmr.2014.34.3.107 Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea pISSN 1738-429X eISSN 2234-4446 Olfactory dysfunction is a relatively common disorder that is often under-recognized by Correspondence to: Seok Hyun Cho Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head both patients and clinicians. It occurs more frequently in older ages and men, and decreases and Neck Surgery, Hanyang University patients’ quality of life, as olfactory dysfunction may affect the emotion and memory func- Hospital, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, tions. Three main causes of olfactory dysfunction are sinonasal diseases, upper respiratory Seoul 133-792, Korea Tel: +82-2-2290-8583 viral infection, and head trauma. Olfactory dysfunction is classified quantitatively (hypos- Fax: +82-2-2293-3335 mia and anosmia) and qualitatively (parosmia and phantosmia). From a pathophysiologi- E-mail: [email protected] cal perspective, olfactory dysfunction is also classified by conductive or sensorineural types. All patients with olfactory dysfunction will need a complete history and physical examina- Received 17 April 2014 Revised 23 June 2014 tion to identify any possible or underlying causes and psychophysical olfactory tests are Accepted 3 July 2014 essential to estimate the residual olfactory function, which is the most important prognos- This is an Open Access article distributed under tic factor. CT or MRI may be adjunctively used in some indicated cases such as head trauma the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution and neurodegenerative disorders.
    [Show full text]
  • Olfactory Dysfunction
    Olfactory Dysfunction: By Steven Sobol, MD, MSc; Saul Frenkiel, MD, FRCSC; and Debbie Mouadeb he sense of smell plays an important role in protecting Tman from environmental dangers, such as fire, natural gas leaks and spoiled food. Physiologically, the chemical senses aid in normal digestion by triggering gastrointestinal secretions.1 Smell influences the palatability of food. Defects in the sense of smell are associated with alterations in perceptions of flavor, leading to anorexia and weight loss. Psychologically, smell is powerful in establishing strong positive and negative memories, and affects socialization and interpersonal relationships. Smell dysfunctions often mean considerable disability and a lower quality of life. Loss or decreased olfactory function affects approximately one per cent of Americans under the age of 60 and more than half the population over that age.2 Aside from having a substantial impact on an individual’s quality of life, olfactory dysfunction may signal an underlying disease. Smell disorders have been largely overlooked by the medical community because of a lack of knowledge and understanding of the sense of smell and its disease states, as well its diagnosis and management. Patients with olfactory disorders need to be clinically assessed, and the etiology and anatomical location of their disorder should be sought out. The Canadian Journal of Diagnosis / August 2002 55 Olfactory Dysfunction Summary What are the causes of olfactory dysfunction? 1.Conductive olfactory loss is any process that causes sufficient obstruction in the nose preventing odorant molecules from reaching the olfactory epithelium. 2.Sensorineural olfactory loss is any process that directly affects and impairs either the olfactory epithelium or the central olfactory pathways.
    [Show full text]
  • Alteration, Reduction and Taste Loss: Main Causes and Potential Implications on Dietary Habits
    nutrients Review Alteration, Reduction and Taste Loss: Main Causes and Potential Implications on Dietary Habits Davide Risso 1,* , Dennis Drayna 2 and Gabriella Morini 3 1 Ferrero Group, Soremartec Italia Srl, 12051 Alba, CN, Italy 2 National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; [email protected] 3 University of Gastronomic Sciences, Piazza Vittorio Emanuele 9, Bra, 12042 Pollenzo, CN, Italy; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +39-0173-313214 Received: 3 September 2020; Accepted: 23 October 2020; Published: 27 October 2020 Abstract: Our sense of taste arises from the sensory information generated after compounds in the oral cavity and oropharynx activate taste receptor cells situated on taste buds. This produces the perception of sweet, bitter, salty, sour, or umami stimuli, depending on the chemical nature of the tastant. Taste impairments (dysgeusia) are alterations of this normal gustatory functioning that may result in complete taste losses (ageusia), partial reductions (hypogeusia), or over-acuteness of the sense of taste (hypergeusia). Taste impairments are not life-threatening conditions, but they can cause sufficient discomfort and lead to appetite loss and changes in eating habits, with possible effects on health. Determinants of such alterations are multiple and consist of both genetic and environmental factors, including aging, exposure to chemicals, drugs, trauma, high alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking, poor oral health, malnutrition, and viral upper respiratory infections including influenza. Disturbances or loss of smell, taste, and chemesthesis have also emerged as predominant neurological symptoms of infection by the recent Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus strain 2 (SARS-CoV-2), as well as by previous both endemic and pandemic coronaviruses such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and SARS-CoV.
    [Show full text]
  • Olfactory Dysfunction in COVID-19 Diagnosis and Management
    Clinical Review & Education JAMA Insights | CLINICAL UPDATE Olfactory Dysfunction in COVID-19 Diagnosis and Management Katherine Lisa Whitcroft, BSc, MBChB; Thomas Hummel, MD As of May 1, 2020, more than 3 000 000 people worldwide have olfactory neuroepithelium may result in inflammatory changes been infected with the novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory that impair olfactory receptor neuron function, cause subsequent syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The CDC has highlighted key olfactory receptor neuron damage, and/or impair subsequent symptoms that may suggest coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), neurogenesis. Such changes may cause temporary or longer- including cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fever, lasting OD. Previous work in transgenic animal models showed chills, muscle pain, sore throat, and new loss of smell or taste.1 intracranial entry of SARS-CoV via the olfactory bulb.8 This has led The inclusion of loss of smell or taste among these symptoms to speculation that SARS-CoV-2 may penetrate intracranially with follows the emergence of evidence that suggests that COVID-19 fre- possible downstream effects on olfactory and nonolfactory brain quently impairs the sense of smell. For example, in a study from Iran, regions, which may adversely affect olfactory function. 59 of 60 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 were found to have an impaired sense of smell according to psychophysical olfactory Clinical Assessment testing.2 Olfactory dysfunction (OD), defined as the reduced or dis- During the current pandemic, patients with recent-onset acute torted ability to smell during sniffing (orthonasal olfaction) or eat- smell and/or taste dysfunction, with or without other symptoms of ing (retronasal olfaction), is often reported in mild or even asymp- COVID-19, should undergo a period of self-isolation and, when pos- tomatic cases; in a study from Italy,64% of 202 mildly symptomatic sible, SARS-CoV-2 testing.
    [Show full text]
  • Olfactory Disturbances —Pathophysiological Findings and the Development of New Therapeutic Procedures—
    Ⅵ Sensory Organ Disorders Olfactory Disturbances —Pathophysiological findings and the development of new therapeutic procedures— JMAJ 47(1): 38–43, 2004 Mitsuru FURUKAWA Professor, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Graduate School of Medicine and School of Medicine, Kanazawa University Abstract: Chronic rhinosinusitis is the most frequent cause of hyposmia. We established a new experimental animal model to investigate pathological findings in the olfactory epithelium and olfactory bulb of rats and describe the possible etiology of hyposmia due to rhinosinusitis. Not only dysfunction of the olfactory epithelium but a central type of hyposmia caused by disorders of the olfactory bulb was demonstrated by immunohistochemistry. The possible etiology of hyposmia after common colds and dysosmia after traumatic olfactory disorders is also described based on recent studies. Hyposmia after common colds is strongly associated with nasal obstruction, swelling of the nasal mucosa, and edema of the mucosa of the olfactory cleft observed by nasal fiberscopy. Viral infection is consid- ered one of the etiologies of anosmia after common colds, especially in women from 40 to 60 years old, and results in a poor outcome. One possible explanation of olfactory dysosmia is misdirected connections during reinnervation of the olfac- tory bulb by olfactory nerve fibers after apoptotic change of olfactory receptor neurons and traumatic amputations of olfactory filla at the level of ethmoid lamina cribrosa. These findings suggested new ideas for the treatment of patients with different types of olfactory disturbances. Key words: Pathophysiology; Olfactory disturbances; Paranasal sinusitis; Common cold; Parosmia Introduction everyday life. Due to hearing difficulty, aged people tend to be isolated from their commu- The research on gustatory and olfactory senses nities and also from participating in social have not been fully developed as compared to activities.
    [Show full text]
  • Phantosmia and Migraine with and Without Headache
    ISSN 0017-8748 Headache doi: 10.1111/head.12890 VC 2016 American Headache Society Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Expert Opinions Phantosmia and Migraine With and Without Headache Yasmin I. Jion, MD; Brian M. Grosberg, MD; Randolph W. Evans, MD Phantosmia is a rare migraine aura. We present two cases of phantosmias occurring before migraine headaches and also without headaches. To our knowledge, these are the third and fourth cases of phantosmias ever reported due to migraine aura without headache. Key words: phantosmia, olfactory hallucination, migraine, headache (Headache 2016;00:00-00) CASE HISTORIES take acetaminophen with relief in 1–2 hours. Stress Case 1.—This is a 53-year-old female with a 9- was a trigger. month history of smelling a dirty dog smell as often as She saw a cardiologist about 1 month after 2–3 times a day or up to 4 days without the smell with onset and had a CT of the brain without contrast an average duration of 5 minutes (range 30 seconds to on 1/19/15 that was normal. She saw two ENT phy- 1 hour) followed by a headache about every 2 weeks sicians who found normal exams. but most of the time without an associated headache. Past medical history of hyperlipidemia on prav- She described a bifrontal throbbing headache with an astatin. Family history: sister has migraine. Neuro- intensity of 6/10 associated with nausea, light and noise logical examination was normal. sensitivity but no vomiting. She always takes ibuprofen MRI of the brain with and without contrast was with relief in 1 hour.
    [Show full text]